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Detroit Red Wings seven-time Norris Trophy winner Nicklas Lidstrom was the greatest defenseman of his generation. If you are ready to debate that statement, you are what we like to call wrong.
Maybe you can debate the greatest goaltender of Lidstrom’s NHL generation. Some might vote for Patrick Roy. Others will lean toward Martin Brodeur.
Lidstrom has his choice in this debate and it’s none of the above.
His ballot is cast towards his old Red Wings teammate Dominik Hasek.
“Yes. Dom is the best goalie I’ve ever been on a team with,” Lidstrom told Czech website isport.cz. “I have to say, he had an incredible competitive spirit. And he had a unique style.
“All he cared about was stopping the puck. He subordinated everything to that.”
Hasek recently celebrated his 60th birthday.
Happy Birthday to Dominik Hasek, the greatest goaltender of all time and flipper of Marian Gaborik. #LGRW pic.twitter.com/WNyh4fH2SX
— Winged Wheel Podcast (@WingedWheelPod) January 29, 2023
Certainly, Hasek, like Lidstrom a Hockey Hall of Famer, has the hardware to back up his place in the goalie GOAT debate. With the Buffalo Sabres, The Dominator won six Vezina Trophies and two Hart Trophies. Coming to the Red Wings in 2001, he’d win a pair of Stanley Cups with Detroit.
Red Wings Hasek Was Ultra Competitive
What stands out the most in Lidstrom’s mind when he recollects playing in front of Hasek was the latter’s competitive streak.
“Really great competitiveness, Lidstrom said, noting how hard it was to get a puck past Hasek during a Red Wings practice.
“Terribly challenging. It goes back to . . . how competitive he was. He didn’t want to let go of the puck and he hated it when he gave up a goal. He was always furious when he let go of a goal.”
Dziś 60 lat kończy "Dominator" z Czech czyli Dominik Hasek. @NHLwPL pic.twitter.com/2JgCp6WFvY
— Przemo K (@PrzemokL) January 29, 2025
On game day, Lidstrom would marvel at the way Hasek could turn himself into a human pretzel in order to get some part of his anatomy in the way of the puck.
“Once he did a fish jump after the puck,” Lidstrom said. “Another time he lay on his back, threw his legs out. We could see him in all sorts of positions.
“The opponent might have thought he had beaten him, but suddenly his hand, leg, whatever, came out of nowhere . . . I don’t think anyone else had caught it like that.”
Clearly, though, there was method in Hasek’s madness.
“He was different,” Lidstrom said. “Most goalies would kneel down, try to hold on a lot. But that wasn’t his case. He had his own style. Unique, inimitable.
“He was able to read situations ahead and quickly assess the best way to catch the puck. Like other goalies, he had excellent positioning, but he read the game better. He was anticipatory. He could guess where the shot was coming from and where it was going to go. And then came his famous saves.”
Off the ice, the Hasek Lidstrom recalls was a much different fellow.
“A fun person who was great fun off the ice,” Lidstrom said. “And a friend. Those are the main things that come to mind.
“We’re still in touch with Dom, even though it’s not on a regular basis anymore.”
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TODAY'S BEST
Rangers Sign Former Stanley Cup Champion to Tryout Agreement
The New York Rangers are adding to their forward depth ahead of their upcoming training camp. The Rangers are entering a new chapter of their organization under new head coach Mike Sullivan. After missing the postseason last year, the organization is trying to rebound and respond accordingly in 2025 and 2026. Former Stanley Cup champion forward Conor Sheary is the latest player to join the new-look Rangers. The veteran forward agreed to a professional tryout agreement (PTO) with the club and will look to earn an NHL deal with his performance in training camp and the preseason. Sheary is a veteran of 593 NHL games. Originally an undrafted free agent, he signed with the Pittsburgh Penguins after completing his collegiate career. Following a year with the Penguins' AHL affiliate, he forced his way onto the NHL squad after posting 36 points in his first 30 games of the 2015-2016 season at the AHL level. His debut NHL season went better than ever expected, and he was a key part of the Penguins' lineup that won back-to-back Stanley Cups in 2016 and 2017. Sheary's coach at the time, both at the AHL and NHL levels, was Mike Sullivan. Now, he'll get the chance to reunite with the coach under whom he won two championships. In addition to playing for the Penguins, Sheary has played for three other NHL franchises. The Pens dealt him to the Buffalo Sabres before the 2018-2019 campaign, but he would return to Pittsburgh the following season at the trade deadline. After his second stint with the Penguins, he joined the Washington Capitals. He played three seasons in Washington, D.C. before landing with the Tampa Bay Lightning, where he spent the past two years. Over his 593 career games, he's compiled 124 goals and 143 assists for 267 points. His best NHL season came during the 2016-2017 campaign, his second in the league. He scored 23 goals and added 30 assists for 53 points in 61 regular-season games.
Fever Coach Stephanie White Has Given One Player the Green Light Amid Caitlin Clark's Injury
Caitlin Clark is expected to sit out for a fourth straight game on Sunday when the Indiana Fever take on the Chicago Sky in a much-awaited rivalry matchup. The 23-year-old is still dealing with a reaggravated groin strain and has no timetable to return. The rest of her Fever teammates have had to step up in her absence. There is, perhaps, no other player who has taken a bigger role on the offensive end amid Clark’s injury spell than three-time All-Star Kelsey Mitchell. Mitchell, however, struggled with her shot in Thursday’s win against the Las Vegas Aces. The 5-foot-8 guard shot the ball poorly in the first three quarters, going just 4-of-19 from the field for 12 points. Mitchell caught fire in the fourth, though. She went 4-of-5 in the final frame for nine points, finishing with a game-high 21 points on 8-of-24 shooting. This is exactly why head coach Stephanie White remains completely confident in Mitchell’s scoring ability. The veteran coach has made it clear that she has given Mitchell the green light to shoot the rock. “The biggest thing with Kelsey is just telling her, ‘Let it fly.’ It’s going to go,” White said after Thursday’s win against Las Vegas. "... Keep shooting it from outside. She made some big ones when we needed them.” Kelsey Mitchell Has Stepped up Amid Clark's Injury Mitchell has answered the call for the Fever of late. In the three games Clark has been sidelined, Mitchell has put up averages of 22.0 points on 42.9% shooting. She also knocked down 2.7 triples during that stretch on a 34.8% clip. The 29-year-old veteran will need to keep her foot on the gas on Sunday as the Fever try to take down the Sky at United Center. With Clark watching from the bench, the Fever will rely on Mitchell’s scoring against Chicago as they look to improve on their 13-12 record. The Fever and Sky meet at 3 p.m. ET Sunday on ABC.
Yankees not close to done adding ahead of trade deadline
The New York Yankees already made headlines by acquiring third baseman Ryan McMahon from the Colorado Rockies on Friday. That may not be their only move ahead of the July 31 trade deadline. According to Chris Kirschner of The Athletic, the Yankees have an extensive shopping list. While a right-handed hitting infielder is a priority, New York is also looking for help in the rotation and bullpen. Acquiring McMahon may have contributed to the push for a right-handed hitting infielder. McMahon has struggled against left-handed pitching throughout his career, posting a .231/.307/.378 batting line in 1,079 plate appearances, hitting 34 homers and 35 doubles. Those struggles have been even more pronounced this year. McMahon is slashing .207/.289/.310 in 97 plate appearances against southpaws, with two homers and three doubles. Kirschner specifically listed Minnesota Twins utility man Willi Castro as someone the Yankees are targeting, whose career .260/.306/.399 batting line in 689 plate appearances against lefties would make him a solid complement to McMahon. Likewise, the club's pursuit of pitching makes sense. Marcus Stroman has been much better since returning from the injured list at the end of June, but he cannot be considered a reliable option. Rookie Will Warren has been inconsistent, and with Clarke Schmidt likely lost until 2027 due to Tommy John surgery, the rotation needs work. New York's relief corps may be further down the team's needs. While every contending team looks to bolster the bullpen ahead of the trade deadline, the Yanks' upgrades could come from within. Relievers Fernando Cruz and Mark Leiter Jr. are expected back in August, while fellow reliever Yerry De los Santos was activated from the IL on Saturday. The Yankees still have a lot of work to do ahead of the trade deadline. It could be a busy next few days in the Bronx.
Top three notable names to leave the NBA for Europe this summer
There are only 450 spots in the NBA, 540 if you count two-way contracts. Each year, there's a group of players who hit the free-agency market and quietly fade into the obscurity of professional basketball outside of the NBA's bubble. Most of those players head overseas, either to Europe, Australia or China. In recent years, the jump from the NBA to Europe has grown in popularity. The talent level across the top European leagues has dramatically increased, with some teams now closing in on NBA levels of skill and athleticism. And with that talent increase, the pay has started to rise, too. It makes sense, then, that some notable names for NBA fans have made the jump across the Atlantic this summer. Here are the top three players to head to Europe since the start of the offseason. Lonnie Walker IV This time last summer, there was significant chatter about whether Lonnie Walker IV would earn the 15th and final spot on the Boston Celtics roster. The same roster that had won the NBA championship just months earlier. After seeing his Exhibit 10 deal with Boston expire, Walker ended up heading to Lithuania to play for Zalgiris Kaunas before the Philadelphia 76ers brought him back for the second half of the season. Now, after failing to secure a new contract with the Sixers, Walker is heading to Israel, where he's signed a three-year, $10 million deal with Maccabi Tel Aviv. Walker will now be one of the highest earners within all of European basketball. Oshae Brissett Walker will join Oshae Brissett over in Tel Aviv, as the former NBA champion has also signed with the franchise this summer. Brissett is just 18 months removed from playing a role on the Celtics roster that won the 2024 championship. Brissett doesn't have the athleticism and scoring skill that Walker brings to the table. As such, he won't be bringing home the same level of pay packet. However, he will undoubtedly be one of the better players, both in the Israeli league and in Europe. Brissett leaves the NBA having played in 233 games, averaging 6.6 points and 3.9 rebounds on 41.9 percent shooting from two-point range and 33.7 percent from deep. Shake Milton Nobody can deny that Shake Milton has outperformed expectations after entering the NBA as the 54th pick in the 2018 draft. He leaves the NBA having suited up for 359 regular-season games and 40 postseason outings. Milton has spent time with the Philadelphia 76ers, Minnesota Timberwolves, Detroit Pistons, New York Knicks, Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers. Impressively, he's consistently earned playing time, regardless of what roster he's been on. Nevertheless, it would appear that Milton has sought out an opportunity where he can be a core member of a rotation. According to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews, Milton has signed a two-year deal to play in Serbia for Partizan Belgrade. If he can adjust to the physicality of the Serbian league and the slightly different rules set, Milton could become a high-level player in the domestic league and perhaps even in Europe.
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